


A Different Kind of Mask

by Kyraplier, LevvyWut



Category: Borderlands (Video Games), Tales from the Borderlands - Fandom
Genre: #BLESS, Beautician AU, Canon-Typical Violence, If ur easily triggered then don't read anything I write my dudes, Jack's not quite as much of an ass as he could be, M/M, Sickly Rhys, Violence, the comments give me life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-27
Updated: 2017-03-10
Packaged: 2018-09-27 06:10:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,898
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9979841
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kyraplier/pseuds/Kyraplier, https://archiveofourown.org/users/LevvyWut/pseuds/LevvyWut
Summary: Rhys is a sickly little beautician that somehow got the most merciless man in the world to turn into a puppy dog for him. Honestly, it wasn't much harder than getting his eyeliner perfect...So it was pretty fucking hard.





	1. I Use Fancy Shit Now

**Author's Note:**

> @Kyra I hope u love me for this its 1:24 a.m. and u fell asleep on Skype w/ me

Rhys ran the wand over his lips, glancing up to his boyfriend as his smacked them together, a slight grin curling at the corners. Jack sat next to him, squishing Rhys's beauty blender in his hand, a confused look in his eyes. The two of them sat in the floor of Rhys's office as Rhys did his makeup. Rhys dabbed concealer onto his undereye, and Jack asked his usual questions about what the hell he was doing.

  
"What do you use this for, Pumpkin? It's like a frickin' bouncy ball!!"

  
"Its for foundation, Jack."

  
Rhys continued his mission, taking the blender from Jack's hands. Slowly, he dabbed on foundation, sitting the bottle down next to his foot.

  
"Kiddo, whats the difference in these?"

  
Jack held up the concealer tube and the foundation bottle, and Rhys would've facepalmed if he hadn't loved his boyfriend so much.

  
"One of them is thicker I guess? Its like...its supposed to hide blemishes-"

  
"What blemishes?"

  
"Jack-"

  
"And thick? Have you seen this dick, Rhysie?"

  
"Oh my god, Jack..."

  
Rhys tried to turn his attention back to his art, dabbing on a matte shadow in his crease, his boyfriend chuckling off to the side. The light on his mirror flickered as he looked down to grab his eyeliner. Jack let out a huff.

  
"What?"

  
He leaned in to draw his wings in, small, almost nonexistant, when Jack plopped his head on his shoulder with a whine, causing Rhys to not only get a bit of liner in his eye, but all over his lid and the side of his face.

  
"Damnit, Jack!"

  
"Rhysie, baby, I'm sorry! Are you okay?! Here let me see-"

"Nonono, it's fine,"Rhys wiped his eye with his hand. "It doesn't hurt. See?"

  
"But its your-"

  
"Its fine, Jack. I'm okay."

  
Rhys retrieved a makeup remover pad and dabbed at his eye with it, removing not only his botched eyeliner, but his masterful eyeshadow and half of his brow with it. As he began to redo it, Jack sat, puppyfaced and clearly sorry. Any frustration Rhys had with his partner was gone the second he saw the sorrow in Jack's eyes just from hurting him in the slightest.

  
"Jack, its okay, I promise,"He leaned over and placed a small kiss on Jack's nose.

  
The corners of Jack's lips turned up and he was suddenly beaming. He waited a few seconds, testing the waters before tackling Rhys to the floor in some kind of bear hug. Rhys hit the wood with a quiet thump, Jack's lips against his, and a slight giggle bubbling up from his throat. When they sat up, Rhys was in Jack's lap, their lips locked once again.

  
Jack, of course, slipped his tongue into Rhys's mouth, instantly dominating him, but only for a moment before he pulled away, a breathless Rhys wrapped around his shoulders.

  
"Asshole,"Rhys offered, glancing up to him in indignation.

  
They sat in a hug for a while, just wrapped in each other, appreciating one another's warmth, the safe feeling that derived just from contact. Rhys's voice broke the silence with a small hum, moving himself to apply mascara before he glanced back to his boyfriend.

"Hey, Jack, remember how we met?"

  
"How could I forget, cupcake?"

 

* * *

  
The day that Hugo Vasquez knocked over a light fixture on the set of the new Hyperion magazine cover was the day that Rhys knew he was about to die. It was all fine until the jealous asshole decided that ruining a photographer's light and pinning the blame on Rhys right to Handsome goddamn Jack's face was the best idea he'd ever had.

  
As Rhys sat in the airlock capsule, he knew that Vasquez had to be cackling somewhere, bragging about sending the little shrimp from his old college class to hell. Rhys knew there wasn't a way out of this one, he could beg for his life, but this was Handsome Jack. This was the most merciless man he'd ever met. The man that had nearly strangled Mr.Morris this morning for spilling a tiny drop of coffee on his pantsleg.

In short, Rhys was doomed, and it was alllll thanks to Assquez.

  
"Well, at least I'll die pretty,"He said to himself with a sigh, eyes flickering to the compartment doors as they slid open.  
"I said to have them on my desk by four thirty, Maya. Yes, yes, I know this puts us behind schedule,"Handsome Jack sounded annoyed, and Rhys was totally not ready for whatever this man was about to scream at him.

  
When he hung up the phone, however, Jack only let out a sigh and rubbed his temples.

  
"Look kid, I'll give you your one change to get yourself the hell outta this mess. Start talking, you've got ten minutes before blast off,"the CEO sat down, barely looking up to Rhys.

  
Rhys swallowed and thought about where he could begin.

  
"Start talkin'. Any sob story you've got. Go."

  
He pondered for a moment, then Jack took that as him not having an answer and went to push the eject button.

  
"W-Wait, please, Handsome Jack, sir, just l-let me figure out how to say this!"

  
He released his metal arm from it's port and sat it down on the sill of the window that separated the two, and Jack raised an eyebrow.

  
"How'd you get it?"

  
"I was born with this tiny little arm, right? It was useless,"He started, chuckling nervously. "Actually, it was pretty detrimental. Birth defect, all that jazz. My eye was bad too, so, they just....took them. And it wasn't good on me, because, ya know, I was a baby."

  
"Point?"

  
"Getting there, S-sir!!"

  
Jack shifted, crossing one leg over the other. His expression was unreadable, and Rhys was terrified, but did his best to keep it together. Under the circumstances, his best wasn't too bad.

  
"I almost died, and up until a few years ago, I had to be under watch, right? Someone had to be with me all the time to make sure I didn't collapse and die. I still take an insane amount of meds, vitamins, antibiotics, other stuff, just to function and it only works some days, but I'm fighting to make up for the time I lost being guarded and protected from everything."

Handsome Jack's nose twitched.

  
"I've never been in an airplane, I've never ridden a roller coaster, I've never eaten anything spicier than a Flamin' Hot Cheeto because my parents were afraid it'd kill me. I'm just trying to find a way to live and this was supposed to be the ticket-"

  
"Okay, kid, I've heard enough."

  
For a terrifying few seconds, Rhys thought he was going to be ejected into space, so he took the deepest breath his lungs could muster and closed his eyes.

  
Needless to establish, the sound of the pod's doors opening surprised him.

  
"Look, I don't usually do this, but I watched over the tapes, and it wasn't really on you. Maya said I couldn't kill you without reason, and you just proved to me that you've got every reason to live. Show up at three o'clock Thursday and we'll finish the shoot."

  
Jack clapped a hand on his shoulder, then turned to walk away, not muttering another word. Rhys only stood in shock for a moment before he slipped his arm back into it's port and thanked his boss for the mercy.

  
"Don't mention it. For real. Unless you want to die. Then by all means-"

  
"No, sir, thank you!!"

  
"Drop the sir, Kiddo. Just call me Jack."

  
With that, Jack was gone, down the hall way to greet some robot about lunch plans. Rhys scurried away, back to his apartment, where he instantly collapsed in relief. His first instinct was to call his roommate and deliver the news that if someone had called and told him to start looking for a new roomie or a cheaper place, then he didn't have to because somehow, Rhys was still alive.  
Vaughn was more than happy to hear that he didn't have to find a new roommate, and even happier to know that Rhys hadn't been hurt or killed.

  
"Assquez told me that you were done for. Bro, wait until he sees you Thursday."

  
"He's gonna riot."

  
"Hell yeah. Hey, order a pizza and Netflix Stranger Things. I'll pick it up and be there in like, twenty."

  
With that the call ended with a few more bros and a pair of goodbyes and Rhys was given a moment to lay back and calm his dizzied brain. He remembered his medication, and turned to grab the bag, popping the little white nuisance into his mouth. He swallowed and rolled, ordering the pizza the way Vaughn liked it.

  
It was 1:20 Thursday afternoon before Rhys found it to drag himself out of bed. Shower. Food. Face. Half an hour to wander the city, inhaler in hand, until he needed to head for Hyperion Corp.

  
His bag was packed with Elf products, not really top of the line, but great for his budget. Of course he had a few special things that he'd treated himself to, but the Elf products were all he knew. Obviously, seeing a eyeshadow pallet slip out of someones bag would make the drunk trio on the street corner suspect that Rhys wasn't a man.

  
Of course, it was completely out of line for them to drag him into an alley and pants him. And it was even worse when the figure out he was a male. Rhys numbed over at that part, only a ring on one of their hands gash into his face when the punched him, called him a freak. Then someone yelled and they took off running.

  
He shook. Everything was moving way too fast. It took him moments to ground himself, slinking down the wall and trying to pull his pants back over his ass at the same time.

  
"Hey, you okay?"

  
Thank God he'd put his fucking pants back on already, otherwise that girl probably would've run away. He noticed he was still gripping his nearly lost pallet in one had, the powders crumbled and staining the clear top. Somewhere in himself, he found a nod, and the lady helped him up, pulling the pallet away before he could crush it and hurt himself.

  
"Hey, I work in the cafe' right here. Come on in, use the employee restroom to fix yourself up and I'll make you a coffee, okay? No charge,"He dreds reached her shoulders and she looked whimsical.

  
If Rhys said he hadn't calmed down a bit right then, he'd be lying.

  
Inside, she handed him a small mocha to go and let him fix his makeup in the bathroom mirror. With enough shitty concealer and foundation, the scratch left by a fists connection was mostly covered, along with the bloody bruising that was slowly forming across his cheekbone.

  
Inside, she introduced herself.

"My name's Sasha,"She smiled as he took a sip of his newly obtained mocha.

  
"Thank you so much,"He blurted. "I'm Rhys, and as much as I'd love to stay, I have to go, like right now!"

 

He was really bad at talking to pretty people. 

  
Rhys hated to run off like that, but it was only then that he noticed it was nearly three and he was still ten minutes from the Hyperion building. He swore he'd go back to thank her later as he rounded the corner into the shooting room and sat down against the wall, trying his hardest to just fucking catch his breath.

  
"Kiddo?"

  
Unmistakable, Handsome Jack, was the one eyeing him from a few feet above as he tried to recover what little sanity he could manage.

  
"Y-Yes, J-Jack?"He stammered, taking a puff off the inhaler in his pocket.

  
"Okay, as much as I'd like to worry and ask if you're okay, it can wait until we're somewhere where the asshole that tried to get you killed isn't watching. C'mon, dressing room. You're my artist now."

  
With that, Jack had tugged him up and lead him down the hall, shooting an overmenacing glare to any passerby who dared shooting them a questioning glance. The second the door shut, Jack rolled up Rhys's sleeves and observed what, in a panic, Rhys hadn't seen or managed to cover.

  
Darkening fingerprints decorated his wrists and forearms and Rhys was dizzy again. Jack's thumb ran across the cut on his cheek and Rhys suppressed a shiver and wince.

  
"Wipe off your...foun...founda....fucking face, Kid,"Jack rifled through the supplies and threw a pack of makeup wipes in Rhys's direction.

  
Knowing better than to disobey, Rhys cleaned off the slightly swollen area, letting Jack take a not so careful look.

  
"Jeez, cupcake, I spare your life and you go get in a fight? With who?"

  
Rhys couldn't face him.

  
"Some drunk guys thought I was a lady and hit on me. When they realized I wasn't they beat the shit out of me for leading them on. Sorry I was late."

  
Another small puff from the inhaler and his lungs seemed to clear for the most part. Rhys could breath.

  
"Pumpkin, don't worry about that right now,"Jack ushered. "Look, let me get first aid, then we'll talk. I'll give you my personal and next time -and Christ better pray there's not a next time- you can call me and I'll kick some ass for you."

  
With a nod, Rhys finally looked up, and saw a man that, though terrifying, seemed so genuine that even someone who'd been taught to trust nothing knew he was truly caring.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rushing to post this before I go to work heehheeeeeeee
> 
> Special thanks to the people who commente. <3 i love you guys and my goooooddd u give me so much more motivation. 
> 
> @Kyra im gonna callout post you everytime u fall asleep on skype with me while we wrtie this.

"Vaughn, are you sure you don't want me to do yours too?"

"Yes, Rhys, I'm sure,"Vaughn sighed and glanced to his bro, watching as he ran a clear coat over his freshly manicured nails.

Rhys was well aware that Vaughn didn't understand why he put so much effort into his appearance. It wasn't a problem until it came down to their...hoarding, tendencies. See, Rhys hoarded his makeup. Although it was all dollar store, Rhys had a lot of makeup, and that didn't include the room he took to store his nail polish and everything else. Vaughn, on the other hand, was a tech nerd, and had all kinds of tools stored everywhere around their apartment. 

In short, their home was a clusterfuck, but it was a home. 

And it was like this a lot, with Rhys sat at one end of the couch pampering himself and Vaughn sat at the other end scrolling through reddit or trying to finish Voltron on Netflix (a feat he'd been trying to achieve for about two months now).

The change was, Rhys didn't usually get texts from the most dangerous man in the world. The tone startled the both of them, causing a glance back and forth between the two before Rhys picked up his phone and swiped over his passcode.

"Bro, dude, what the fuck?"

Vaughn scooted closer to him, then blinked and rubbed at his eyes as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing. Rhys couldn't comprehend the text either, pulling a double take. 

"Does that say what I think it says?"

"Y-Yeah,"Rhys tapped the little icon and made some kind of confused noise. "I forgot to tell you about it, but when I got into it with those guys the other day, Handsome Jack helped me clean up."

"Dude, first he spares your life, then he helps you after you get your ass kicked?"

"Shut up! And afterwords he said 'I spare you a beating just so you can go get one anyway? Not a chance.' He called me cupcake and everything,"Rhys sighed, unsure of what he was supposed to do. 

Unknown Number: hey kiddo just checking up to make sure you didn't get yourself hurt again. shoot me a text when you get the chance. :D

The use of the small emoji seemed so out of character for Handsome Jack, and at first Rhys didn't believe it was him. But he wasn't going to text back something stupid and risk getting airlocked. For the second time this week, anyway. 

So, he shot a quick text back and hoped to God that Jack really wanted a response. 

You: Hi, Jack. :-) I'm fine, promise. I wouldn't disobey another order. I don't want to almost die for the second time this week.

He saved Jack's number into his phone almost nervously. He was skirting around his words, trying to avoid the man's anger. He'd already faced it once, and honestly? It was more than enough for a lifetime.

Handsome Jack: jeez, i'm not that bad, cupcake. i was just having a shit day. 

It only then occured to Rhys that he'd never given Jack his number. How he'd gotten it was beyond Rhys, but he didn't really care. This was Handsome Jack, the man that could kill someone and no one questioned it. 

Vaughn was totally shell shocked, having scooted over closer to Rhys so he could see as the two texted back and forth. Rhys's fingers were shaking, showing how uneasy he was about the situation, but Vaughn threw a reassuring arm around his shoulder. The corners of his lips turned up and he placed his phone in his lap, no longer awaiting anxiously awaiting the next message. 

"Hey, its about time for you to rest, Rhys,"Vaughn was always careful about the subject of Rhys's illness, but firm in the same sentence when he noticed Rhys's eyes drooping. "You know how you get when you don't sleep enough."

"Yeah. I'll tell him goodnight."

You: I'm going to head off to bed, Jack. Thanks for checking on me. :-)

With that, Rhys stood, running a freshly manicured hand through his hair and heading off to get ready for bed. He was in the middle of brushing his teeth when he heard his familiar text tone again. 

Handsome Jack: yeah, no problem kid. goodnight.

Spitting into the sink, Rhys let out a tired sigh and began his routine. First, his many vitamins. Then came the prescription pills. Then the prescription liquids. He barely made it to his bed before he collapsed into a loopy daze of medication. 

He was only half awake when he noticed the light flashing on his phone to indicate a text. Anticipating Vaughn's usual 'its nine a.m. time to get up' text, he was taken aback when he saw another from Jack. 

Handsome Jack: look, kiddo, i know you're terrified of me and all, but i was wondering if we could meet up for lunch? i wanna talk business.

You: Of course! I know a little cafe that I've been meaning to visit, if it's not too much trouble. 

Rhys knew better than to turn the man down, but he didn't wanna be drug to some place that was out of his very minimal price range. So, he sent the coordinates and rushed to get dressed and make himself presentable. Then came morning medications and slipping his metal arm back into the port on his shoulder. With that, out the door he went, shuffling along to the same corner that he'd met his attackers on merely a week earlier. 

"Sure, kiddo, whatever you say."

They got to talking about hardware, books, and He got lucky; there wasn't anyone around. The shop was even empty, save for a familiar dark skinned girl with masterfully done dreadlocks that were stacked high on top of her hair in a bun of sorts. Small, barely noticable freckles dotted her cheeks and her face lit up when she saw Rhys.

"Hey! I'm glad to see that you're okay!!"

He let out a quiet chuckle and sat down, watching as she marched over to the table, taking a seat across from him.

"Yeah, I've actually meant to come back by to thank you for everything."

"Its not a big deal, I'd do it for anyone in that situation. Wouldn't you?"

"Ye-"

The door's little bell chimed as Rhys's guest appeared, and Sasha stood, heading back to the bar to attend to him. Jack sat down moments later, looking as casual as Rhys had ever seen him, but in a pristine way that said someone picked these clothes for me so I'd specifically look casual. 

"Hi,"Rhys smiled, feeling the pep in his voice. 

Jack sat back and returned the grin, rubbing his hands together against the frigid air conditioning. He seemed to admire Sasha for a moment, before turning his head to Rhys. 

"I see, so she's your type?"

"What? NoNoNo, I don't have a type,"Was Rhys's reply.

Hyperion. A lot of things Rhys only knew because of Vaughn, but somehow, Jack didn't get frustrated with him and was willing to clarify the parts that confused Rhys. It was the opposite of what Rhys expected. 

Lunches happened twice a week between the two. Vaughn was terrified that Rhys would fuck up and end up dead, but after a few days of texting between Rhys and Jack, Rhys thought that maybe he knew the ins and outs and where to not push buttons. They were lined up for lunch on week four, a day from the present time, and Rhys was so, so afraid he'd have to cancel. 

For once, he'd been given an insane deadline and god, Rhys was exhausting himself trying to meet it. Of course he worried himself, but Vaughn was a mess about it, since he was in charge of making sure Rhys didn't neglect his already detrimental health. And Vaughn did a great job of it too, forcing Rhys to sleep for at least two hours at night and making sure all his meds got down him.

The deadline was wearing on Rhys though, and he found himself having a harder time keeping his eyes open throughout the endless sea of paperwork. It wasn't long before he had to turn it in and he found himself rushing down the stairs in just his sweatpants and t-shirt to slide the envelope into the mail. It was a relief, sure, but the weight of just how tired he was hit him then and he knew he needed to call Vaughn or Yvette, his emergency contacts in case something happened regarding his arm or his eye or even if he got sick. 

The dial button seemed to sway in the low light of the apartment as Rhys's overheating body slid onto the floor. After a rejected call the Vaughn, he got a hold of Yvette, who was on her way. Then he remembered Jack through he haze he was suddenly shrouded in. The letters on his keypad swam as he tried to type. 

You:hey can;t make it tomorroe rlly sick mgiht go to the hospital, dont worryetho ill be okau

He heard the sound of the apartment door opening and saw Yvette. She sat him up, felt his forehead, took his pulse, ran a diagnostic check on his eye and arm. Rhys found it somewhere in his body to cough and whine throughout, slightly dazed with illness as she picked him up like he was nothing and carried him out to the car. 

"Rhys, try to stay coherent, please."

He did his best, but before they reached their destination, Rhys was sick in the Walmart bag from the floorboard and he wasn't sure how it got in his hands but he was glad he didn't ruin the interior of Yvette's car. 

"Jesus Christ, Vaughn, pick up your phone!"Yvette was clearly aggravated. "Hey, Rhys, have you had your medication today?"

He shook his head and didn't really remember much after that. He was conscious, sure, but not coherent. The next time he was thinking clearly was when he'd already been placed in a hospital bed, an IV stuck in his arm. Yvette had already yelled at Vaughn, in which Rhys butted in and assured her that it wasn't his fault. 

"I just needed to meet my deadline,"He sighed, waving her anger off. "I know it was stupid of me, but I needed to."

Yvette sighed and turned to Vaughn, pressing her pointer finger into his chest. 

"You owe me lunch for this. Which we're doing now,"She turned to Rhys. "We'll bring you something back, okay?"

Rhys nodded as Yvette drug Vaughn from the room, missing the next visitor that Rhys hadn't expected at all. 

"Look, Kiddo, honestly I don't know why I'm here. I don't usually check up on my employees, but you're something special."


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> three cheers for writers block i guess. idk. 
> 
> @kyra three times u fell asleep on skype with me but i forgive u because u have low iron

“Jack...."Rhys was slightly taken aback by his boss's sudden appearance. 

 

Jack sat down in an almost timid way, looking as if he felt like he didn't belong.  Rhys wasn't surprised; Jack seemed like the type to go to urgent care centers and demand to be cared for. Maybe he even had a personal doctor that was specifically employed to Hyperion, but, hell, Rhys didn't know.

 

"Kiddo, what're you doing here?"Jack folded his hands and gave what seemed to be a concerned look.  "I've been worried!"

 

"I just wanted to meet the deadline the advertisement department gave me. Vasquez said I'd be fired if I-"

 

"Wait, what?"

 

Rhys stopped when he heard the fire in Jack's voice. He looked up and saw that Jack was clearly pissed to some sort of extreme, but Rhys couldn't understand why.

 

"Look, Kiddo,"Jack paused, clenching his teeth. "Your boss is me. Not wallethead. If you get fired, I'll be the one to do it."

 

"He's the head of the department though-"

 

"Don't interrupt me, Rhys."

 

Rhys shrunk back, terrified. He hadn't seen the man this angry since the  first time he'd attempted to airlock the kid. This time though, the anger was clearly not directed to Rhys, but towards Vasquez. Honestly? It was probably more terrifying to watch than receive. 

 

"You're my employee, got that? Not that shithead's. If he says one word to you out of line, you're gonna tell me, understand?"

 

It was all the now dizzied boy could do to nod, his heart rate up and causing the monitor to rush a bit. Jack noticed and took a deep breath, calming himself in order to calm the boy in front of him. He was afraid to get Rhys all dizzied up and crazy again, knowing how different he'd seemed while he was messed up, even from just one text. 

 

"Jesus, kid, what's wrong with you?"

 

He shrugged, not wanting to tell his entire life story to a man he'd only known personally for three weeks for the second time.

 

"I'm just...sick? I guess?"Rhys sighed, rubbing his temples in an attempt to calm his now pounding head. "Don't worry about it. I'm just an employee, Jack."

 

He heard the CEO growl and winced, seeing his friends suddenly reappearing off the edge of his vision. Yvette shot Rhys a look that was the words she'd never say aloud, what the fuck.  Vaughn let out a nervous chuckle and shot her a glance, one that Rhys couldn't make himself read. 

 

"Yvette, Vaugh,"Rhys forced a grin. "Welcome back!"

 

"Heya, Rhys,"Vaugh spoke through his teeth, eyes flickering back and forth between the one in the hospital bed and Handsome Goddamn Jack, something Vaughn still hadn't gotten used to, and probably never would.  "Hi, Jack."

 

"Heya kiddos,"Jack wiggled an eyebrow, pretending nothing was really wrong? Or maybe nothing was wrong anymore? Who knows, the man was unpredictable.  

 

"Rhys, they said that they were only going to hold you overnight,”Yvette spoke as if she had confidence to rival Jack’s, and sat down in the chair right next to the man, leaving Vaughn to stand in the corner sheepishly. 

 

Rhys felt himself flop back onto the pillows with a somewhat relieved sigh, already wishing he was in his own bed, in his own room, in his own apartment, with Yvette laying at his side scrolling through her social media and ordering Vaughn to go make chicken soup like she always did when Rhys was sick. Every time, the soup would scorch a little but it was still good. Because Rhys wasn’t alone. 

 

He shivered at the thought of being alone while he was sick. It was the entirety of his life from thirteen to sixteen and he never wanted to go back to living that way. Rhys much preferred his hovering friends. He couldn’t help but yawn, not realizing how tired he was until just now.

 

“You should sleep,”The three surrounding him spoke at the same time, the variable addresses being  _ Rhys _ ,  _ Bro _ , and _ Cupcake _ . They shifted their glances from one to each other and Rhys noticed the fond smirk on Yvette’s lips as her eyes darted around. 

 

“Yeah, let’s get out of here for a bit. He’ll be fine long enough for us to get coffee,”She continued.

 

Silently, Rhys thanked her. Jack stood first, taking her hand to pull her up. It was the most gentlemanly thing Rhys had ever seen Jack do, honestly, and for some reason it bugged Rhys to have him interacting with Yvette that way. 

 

“Yeah, I’d love to get to know my favorite employee’s pals,”Jack spoke with a slight hint of a smirk to his voice. Rhys wouldn’t know, he’d already closed his eyes, but the sound of the word favorite made him slightly giddy in a very foreign way and he was glad when the three of them left and his exhaustion finally lulled him to sleep. 

  
  


* * *

 

 

The next week and a half was just Rhys sitting alone at home, relaxing, under his friends, and his boss’s, orders. It was hard to leave bed for the first few days, but after he recharged, Rhys was restless, begging Yvette to come over and let him do her nails or something, just to keep himself occupied for more than fifteen minutes.

 

Eventually he took to texting Jack about lunch plans, wanting to make up for the two he’d missed because he was ill. When the day rolled around, he was ready almost two hours early, and already at the cafe, dabbling on his phone as Sasha swept the floor and argued with someone over the phone. 

 

“August, I said it’s not my fault! Jesus, can’t you wrap your stupid head around what I’ve been saying this whole time? No!” She pulled the phone from her ear and sighed as she looked at the screen, clearly upset. “Christ…”

 

“Is everything okay?”Rhys’s eyebrows furrowed in concern. 

 

“I should be asking you that,”Sasha strolled over, pulling out a chair across from Rhys. “Heard you went to the hospital?”

 

“Yeah, yeah,”Rhys waved it off. “I’m alive.”

 

“I can see that,”She huffed.

 

“So, what’s the deal with...whoever that was?”

 

“My boyfriend decided that he wanted to believe his bitch of a mother over me.”

 

“Wow.”

 

“She’s always accusing me of stuff, and it’s starting to get old,”the bell rang as Jack stepped inside, Sasha standing up to surrender his spot. “I just wish someone could talk to him for me and get it through his head that his mom’s crazy!”

 

“I mean, I could, if you want?”

 

“Would you really?!”Her eyes seemed to light up, leaving Jack very confused. 

 

“Whoa, what’s happening, kiddo?”

 

“Sasha needs relationship drama resolved and I offered to go talk to him for her.”

 

“That...doesn’t sound safe,”Jack raised an eyebrow. 

 

“Honestly, it’s not,”Sasha sighed. “Maybe you could tag along?”

 

Jack shot her a look, then turned to Rhys as if he was asking if he really wanted to go. Rhys shrugged. 

  
“I’m free if you are, Jack.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> haha bitches we finally get the good shit™ 
> 
> also two chapters in one day im back in business. >:3 
> 
> @Kyra :3 :3 :3 :3

"Rhys, I really don't think this is a good idea,"Jack muttered, glancing around at the buildings in the shadiest part of town that Rhys had ever seen.

"You've got your pistol on you, right?"

"Of course!"

"Then I've got nothing to worry about,"Rhys glanced up and winked at his boss, knowing he could get away with it.   
The streets were cracked and psychos dotted every corner, andas much as Rhys would like to say he'd never seen the basketcases before, he'd seen some of them in the higher part of the city, begging the richer folks there for cash. Jack's hand rested lightly on his holster, ready to draw the second that one of them made a move in their direction. 

"It should't be far from here,"Rhys looked around for the sign Sasha had described, hoping the bar wouldn't be hidden too well from the naked eye. 

"Are you sure you want to do this? Is Sasha even really your friend?"

"Kinda, and either way I definitely owe her one." 

Jack sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. Rhys smirked at knowing he was the only one that was able to exasperate the CEO and manage to live. He wasn't sure how, but he knew Jack wasn't willing to kill him. He also knew that Jack was willing to kill for him, and Rhys was certainly going to use that to his advantage. 

"Found it!"

Dim purple lighting shown from an alleyway and Rhys lead Jack down, entering the bar without a second thought. It was different from the place he always accompanied Yvette and Vaughn to on their nights out, the lights darker and the people huskier. Jack tossed an arm over Rhys's shoulders and he knew he shouldn't let his chest flutter like that but he also wasn't willing to shrug Jack's arm off. 

"Hey, we're looking for August,"Jack stopped one of the bartenders. 

"Uh, why's that?"Said the blond, his nose scrunching up, the light bouncing off a couple of his piercings. 

"Sasha asked for me to come speak with him,"Rhys stepped forward a bit, but totally wasn't expecting a fist to connect with his face that fast. 

Sure, maybe after a bit of reckless teasing but as a greeting? He was literally so tired of being punched in the face.   
Jack caught him and pulled the slightly dizzy boy back to his feet, drawing his pistol and pressing it to (apparently) August's collarbone. Rhys hazily looked up as he blinked away the fog and sawan expression of murderous intent versus the most terrified look he'd ever seen. 

"Look, _Blondie_ , if we didn't have a mission, I would shoot you right now, but I wanna hear the reason you have for yelling at that pretty little girl before you meet your untimely doom."

Rhys simply rubbed the bruise from his cheek, spat blood onto the already filthy floor, and tugged at Jack's tie to calm him.

"Hey, let's just go somewhere to talk. I just wanna solve this without anymore yelling."

* * *

  
Jack was hovering, pulling Rhys close in some sort of protective hold. August was pacing around, biting his thumb, trying to find words. 

"So what was her side of the story?"

"She said that you were believing your mother over her?"

"Obviously! Sasha's lied to me before, why wouldn't she do it again?"

"Explain? Please?"Jack shot Rhys a questioning look, to which he shrugged. 

"She's always been like this, little white lies here and there that make the story that much harder on my end! I look like the bad guy! I get that its just a part of her, and I accept that, but who's telling the truth anymore?"

"And how do we know you are?"

"Because I'm a man of my word. I couldn't be a bartender otherwise,"August raised a pierced eyebrow. 

Rhys let out a sigh, rubbing his bruising cheek again. Jeez, that was going to take a lot of concealer to mask...

"Look, man, sorry I punched you. The rumor this time is that she's cheating and I just thought that maybe you were the guy. Shit, I dunno..."He paused. "Just tell her to call me, okay? I'll try not to yell this time; we'll work it out..."

Jack made some kind of tired grunt, pulling Rhys closer somehow as he glanced over the small laminated menu for the drink with the highest alcohol content. If Rhys drank, he'd be doing the same thing. 

"Look, August, was it? What's got the most booze on this menu?"

The blond pointed it out and Jack threw a twenty in his direction, prompting August to make said drink for him. Rhys glanced up nervously, but masked it as playful and chuckled as Jack downed the liquid as if it was a petty shot. 

"I know you don't drink, otherwise I'd offer to buy,"Jack muttered. 

It was only then that Rhys noticed he was practically in Jack's lap, and God, that stupid flitter reappeared. He cursed it and swallowed it down, seeing Jack motioning for him to get up, that they were leaving. 

"We'll tell Sasha what you said,"Rhys nodded in August's direction, having to up his volume in an attempt to be heard over the now obnoxiously loud music. "But you've gotta trust someone to be in a relationship with them."

A thought that had Rhys cursing ran through his head. Like I trust Jack. Like I trust Jack not to hurt me, or kill me, or airlock me, just because I know I can pull his strings without him getting angry. 

Fuck. 

They exited the bar in a flurry, Jack's hand going back to resting on his pistol, but from the light blush across his cheeks, Rhys didn't expect the man to be able to shoot straight. He was conventionally proven wrong when one of the aforementioned street-corner psychos attacked them and Jack hit him straight in the forehead from fifty feet. 

"Poor bastard's lucky you're with me or it would've been a lot uglier,"Jack hissed, pulling Rhys in the direction of the safer parts of the city. 

The half hour walk to Rhys's apartment was, for once, filled with Jack just talking, which wasn't natural for him. It felt weird, hearing about his ex-wife and his apparent daughter that Rhys had somehow never seen or heard about prior. 

"Angel's an....angel,"Jack droned on as they made their way up the steps to Rhys and Vaughn's apartment. "I'd love for you to meet her sometime, Rhys. That's not something I offer to everyone."

"I'd love to meet her,"Rhys couldn't help but smile as he went to unlock his door, only to have his body twisted around, pinned against the wall as if in some outragiously shitty movie or a really bad fanfiction. 

Jack looked down at him with a kind of stare he didn't recognize. Rhys almost found himself scared, and he would've been, had it not been Jack. He felt his heart pound slightly and recognized that stupid fucking flittering. 

"Look, Rhys,"Jack sighed, moving closer, and Rhys could feel his breath moving his hair. "You keep saying you're just some employee, but you're special, and it's just been so long since I've..."

Rhys couldn't move, watching Jack's every move. 

"I haven't had a _special_ employee since Angel's mom,"He leaned down, meeting Rhys's eyes. "And Jesus, are you pretty."  
Slowly, and Rhys wasn't sure who started it, their lips met. Rhys recognized how chapped Jack's were, and made a note in the back of his head to give him one of his chapsticks that never got any use. 

Neither of them knew what they were doing, clearly. It was sloppy, Rhys's hands going to tangle themselves in Jack's hair and Jack pressing the two of them up against the wall like he was about as familiar with this scenario as Rhys was, and Rhys had no idea what the hell they were doing. He was taken off guard when Jack slipped his tongue into his mouth and a leg between his. 

And it broke just as quickly as it began. Rhys was left stunned as Jack pulled away, looking startled at his own actions. The CEO wiped his mouth on the back of his hand, smearing Rhys's lipstick across his face. 

"Look, Rhysie..."He was flustered, and Rhys just stared, taken aback, with a deep red hue crossing over his cheeks. "I...I shouldn't have done that. I'm sorry, I've gotta go."

Jack sprinted away and out of Rhys's sight, leaving him to sink down against the wall and draw his legs up to his chest, hiding his face in his arms. Eventually, Vaughn arrived back from work and found him in that same position. 

* * *

"Rhys, you're being serious with me right now? You aren't joking?"

"No, Vaughn, why would I be?" 

Rhys's face was pressed into a pillow, but he tilted his head just enough to shoot Vaughn a glare. 

After a twenty minute panic attack, in which Vaughn had to search through their entire clusterfuck for his inhaler, Rhys had settled down enough to tell Vaughn what had transpired throughout the day, leaving the accountant in shock. 

"What the hell am I supposed to do?"Rhys muttered, peeking up as the television channels flipped from one to another. 

"Hell if I know man!" 

So the next three days went without an appearance from Jack, through text or otherwise, until finally, Rhys's text tone startled him awake and the name displayed on his screen shot a dosage of anxiety into his veins. 

**Jack: We need to talk.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh boi oh boi what a day
> 
> i've been sitting here reading fanfiction all day in an attempt to get myself to feel something because my depression is just that strong sometimes and jesus fuck if im not gonna absolutely force myself to feel by writing cute fluffy romantic shit. 
> 
> @Kyra iTS IN MY ARM HAIR 
> 
> (because basing some fanfic stuff off an irl experience is my favorite thing.)
> 
> also guys hey praise me I managed to open up about my feelings for once and thats a huge accomplishment. so yeeeeeeeeet

"Morning, Jack,"Rhys was the late one this time, watching as Jack sat there, his leg bobbing up and down. 

 

He pulled a chair out and sat down, crossing his arms on the edge of the table and sweeping a fallen strand of hair out of his face. Jack wiped his face with one hand and looked Rhys dead in the eyes. 

 

"I'm sorry."

 

"Its okay."

 

It was disturbingly out of character for Jack to apologize, but Rhys tried not to let his surprise show. 

 

"I shouldn't have run away. We should have talked about this then, but..."The CEO paused, taking a breath. "I didn't know what the hell to say. Because its not like...I don't....I don't love you...yet...but you're really special, Kiddo."

 

"That means a lot, Jack,"Rhys smiled, feeling his emotions swirl inside of him because he knew exactly what Jack was saying, and that was the way Rhys felt. The fluttering of his heart caused some strange mix of feelings that weren't love but they definitely weren't not love. 

 

"I didn't love Angel's mother, but then we had Angel and I had to at least pretend and, I dunno, I don't really know what loving someone feels like, so until I'm sure...."Another agonizing pause. "Are you free this afternoon? Aside from work, because I can totally take care of that problem, cupcake."

 

"Jack,"Rhys couldn't help but chuckle. "Are you trying to ask me on a date?"

 

"Maybe."

 

Rhys couldn't help but laugh aloud a little bit, moreover at his own fortune that anything else. Jack looked half confused, half offended, but when Rhys stopped, he reached over and took one of Jack's hands in both of his. 

 

"Of course I'm free, Jack."

 

He'd never seen the CEO's eyes sparkle quite that bright.

 

* * *

 

 

"We could go anywhere in the world, and you choose an strip mall?"

 

"Not just any strip mall, they have an Ulta, and a Sephora."

 

"What the hell is that?"

 

Rhys shot his date a look that was more serious than it should've been, taking Jack's arm in what would've been a death grip if Rhys had been strong enough for Jack to actually call it a death grip. His metal arm's strength contrasted his flesh arm's so greatly that it left Jack actually thinking about Rhys's health for the first time. He seemed so physically weak and Jack wondered how the hell he even managed to go through the surgeries in order to fit his prosthetic. He was curious, but he wasn't sure if there was a boundary set on what he could and couldn't ask about. Hell, why did he care?

 

"They're makeup stores!"

 

Jack wasn't willing to question Rhys further, as his smile said enough to shut the CEO up when he drug Jack into a store that smelled vaguely of roses and powder. The CEO was now out of his element and into Rhys's, and Rhys figured that Jack wouldn't catch the little smirk that hit his lips when he realized that, but no, Jack definitely saw it. 

 

"Okay, so basically, this is where people that are, ehem, wealthier than me, buy their makeup. Sometimes I treat myself though. I've got like...a few little like...highlighters and stuff,"He shrugged. "But I do like to come in and look!"

 

"Okay, you're still speaking English, currently, so I'm gonna ask, what started all this? The makeup, the beauty stuff?"

 

Rhys halted for a moment, looking stunned, then he shook it off and chuckled, grabbing Jack's wrist and flipping it over so he could press a swatch against the underside. 

 

"I had...a lot of free time when I was younger. Just after my surgeries specifically,"He smiled. "So...about...eight years ago, it just...caught my interest. I was bored, it was something to do."

 

Rhys genuinely looked like he was pushing something down, not wanting to talk about it, but at the same time, wanting to rather badly. Jack nudged him. 

 

"Hey, you can tell me, kiddo,  we've got time,"Jack pressed the subject gently. 

 

"It can wait. Maybe later,"He presses another swatch to Jack's wrist and drags the shimmery powder across with his finger. "Don't wanna ruin the mood."

 

"Right..."Jack forced his sigh to be quiet, letting Rhys place row after row of small pigmented stripes across his arm. 

 

Soon, the younger slipped into some kind of speech that Jack could only piece together loosely, something about concealer and Sweet Peaches and other shit that literally sounded like something a beauty guru on Youtube would pull out of their ass. Oh, what do you know? That's exactly what Rhys was, minus the Youtube part. An hour later, and Jack just thought he'd escaped when Rhys left Ulta with a small bag, despite spending nearly forty dollars on some brand that he deemed cheap even though Jack deemed it more than just cheap. 

 

Rhys supposed it was because Jack was some kind of rich. 

 

"I'll buy you stuff, you know,"Jack shook his head. "If we're gonna be....something, cupcake, then I can spend money on you."

 

"As kind as that is, I get the vibe that people have used you for your money before and I don't want to seem like I'm doing that,"Rhys took his little tube out of the bag and ran the wand over a small spot on his hand, leaving a deep blue streak. "So-"

 

"Kitten, that just proves that you aren't. Ask for shit, and I'll make it happen,"Jack's arm snaked around Rhys's shoulder and Rhys couldn't help but smile. 

 

"We'll see about that."

 

* * *

 

"Rhys, you'd better get this shit off."

 

"Relax, they have makeup remover here."

 

After going through the torture of Ulta, Lush, Bath and Body Works, and no Sephora, Jack had a slight headache and was covered in varying smells and colors of makeup, and god, did he just want a normal looking skin tone on his arms.

 

"Here,"Rhys began the process of removing the endless swatches from both Jack's arms and his. "See? It comes off."

 

"Rhysie, baby, it's in my goddamn arm hair,"Jack sighed, face palming. 

 

"It won't stay there forever, Jack,"Rhys chuckled tiredly. 

 

Rhys had hoped Jack wouldn't notice how tired he was from just a few hours of shopping, but Jack, of course, inevitably did, seeing how his eyes had begun to droop slightly and it was just getting harder to fight off his exhaustion. 

 

"Hey, how about we go to my place,"Jack asked, his gaze clouded with concern. "It's close by and you can stay over."

 

"No funny business?"Rhys questioned, getting straight to the point.

 

"Of course not,"Jack huffed, a light dust of pink crossing his cheeks. Rhys couldn't help but find it cute. "Didn't you get a face mask thing that you wanted to try? We can do that and watch a movie. If you need your meds I can-"

 

"Just hush. I know what you're gonna say."

 

"And that is?"

 

"That you have people for that."

 

"...Okay, you're right."

 

* * *

 

"Make yourself at home, Kiddo. Angel's with her mom this weekend so the place is all ours."

 

In spite of all he expected, Jack's apartment was rather normal, but again in a way that seemed forced. Rhys let himself fall on the strangely plush couch and exhaled a short breath. 

 

"Jackkkk,"He whined. 

 

"Yes, kitten?"

 

"I'm too tired to do the mask. Let me put it on you instead?"

 

Jack seemed to stop and consider it, then sat down next to Rhys. 

 

"Sure, why the hell not?"

 

So the next fifteen minutes was spent clipping Jack's fringe out of his face, getting distracted by his wild eyebrows (which Rhys assured him he'd take care of), then brushing a charcoal face mask onto Jack's face and playing the waiting game. 

 

Sometime during the waiting game, Rhys fell flat asleep, unconsciously curling himself into Jack's side. His breath came in short puffs and his hair was falling into his face, Jack's arm wrapped around him. He only began to rouse half an hour later, waking long enough for Jack to get his medication down him and get some kind of direction to take the now dried mask off. 

 

"C'mon, you can go to bed now,"Jack practically carried the smaller man to bed, going to grab a wash cloth to wipe Rhys's makeup off, knowing how much clear skin meant to him. "Alright. Now to get this shit off my face."

 

After multiple strings of violent curses and a wipe down to get what was left off, Jack realized that his face was smooth as hell and honestly? He'd have to thank Rhys in the morning. Never again though. Never-a-fucking-gain (Unless Rhys asked him to.)

 

Shooting Vaughn a quick text, he lay down next to the already dead to the world Rhys and silently admired the sleeping man, everything from his tiny beauty mark just above his lip to the now scarred mark on his cheek from just days after Jack had first met him. It was only when Rhys pulled himself closer that Jack took in the smell of what seemed to be some kind of tropical scent in Rhys's hair and cheap cologne that was barely still clinging to Rhy's jacket and he sighed in admiration, shifting slightly and beginning to drift off himself. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my dudes, there was gonna be so much more to this but Rhys literally n e e d s his beauty sleep or he won't be able to function. Honestly same tho.
> 
> also: next chapter: rhys opens up about his past a little and jack gets his eyebrows done. hell yeeeeeeeeeeeeeee


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> @kyra gaRLIC AMETHYST AND PEARL
> 
> anyway yeah here have some angst. 
> 
> its short and sweet and blah blah blah we dont rlly care about medical accuracy we just tried our best with it lmao. 
> 
> cute shit ahead. but also angsty shit? Idk rhys'll snap on someone in a later chapter or smthn we're rlly fuckin tired n dont feel like editing much

Rhys awoke to the sound of Jack snoring. God the man was like a bear, and just to prove the statement, he had Rhys wrapped in a bear hug. As Rhys tried to move, Jack just pulled him closer, almost like he was just some kind of pillow or stuffed animal, and as cute as it was, Rhys was starting to get a leg cramp. He dared to pat the older man's cheek, trying to rouse him just a little. 

 

"Hey, Jack, c'mon, we gotta get up."

 

"Just go back to sleep, pumpkin,"Jack mumbled; finally rolling over and freeing his smaller companion.

 

"Jesus...."Rhys pushed himself onto his elbows, reaching for his dying phone and opening it up to see...several, to say the least, messages from Vaughn. It was mostly just worried emojis and queries about his medications, so he let it alone and got up. Quietly, he searched for a charger compatible with his phone.

 

Then a pair of arms laced themselves around his waist, a charging cord dangling from one of the fists. Jack kissed Rhys's cheek lightly and Rhys could feel him smile.

 

"Morning, cupcake."

 

"Good morning, Jack,"Rhys chuckled, taking the cord from him. 

 

When Rhys's phone was plugged in, Jack spun him around and just held him in a hug for a good few minutes, and even if Jack wouldn't admit it, he'd had a rough dream or something because his heart was beating too fast to be normal. Rhys just sighed and smiled, letting himself be wrapped in Jack's arms for as long as he needed. 

 

"You want breakfast? I can have something up here in less than fifteen minutes,"Finally, they parted, and Rhys was at a loss as to how he should respond. If the time on his phone was right, it was after lunch, but that didn't seem to bother Jack much as he dialed a seemingly familiar number into his phone. 

 

"I'm game for whatever you wanna get,"Rhys smiled.

 

In less than fifteen minutes, as promised, Jack had simple omelettes brought up for the both of them, and God, it was the best food Rhys had ever put in his mouth. 

 

"Hey, kiddo,"Jack began, having already finished his food. "You...You know you can talk to me about stuff, right?"

 

"Yeah?"

 

"Can I ask you something?"

 

"Of course,"Rhys raised an eyebrow.

 

"Why did you beg me not to leave when I got up to take a piss last night?"

 

It struck Rhys; he didn't remember that at all.

 

"I...don't know. I don't remember."

 

"I don't see how you wouldn't...."Jack scooted closer, taking Rhys's hand. "You were crying by the time I got back, kiddo. I was worried. You scared me."

 

"S-Sorry,"Rhys hung his head.

 

"Look, if there's anything you need to say, ever, you can tell me okay? Even if it's about me. I care, and I wanna know when my Rhysie is feeling down."

 

The words 'my Rhysie' put a smile on his lips. 

 

"Jesus, Jack, of course,"He grinned and let out an exasperated puff of air. "I just...I don't...No one likes hearing sob stories and no one's ever actually wanted to listen, no matter how willing they seem like they are to."

 

He paused and looked up to see Jack's expression, clearly of both sympathy and concern. Jack pulled Rhys into his lap and brought him close, the younger of the two resting his head on Jack's shoulder. 

 

"I'm willing to, and I want to, Rhysie."

 

It was Rhys's heart's turn to pound furiously, and it took everything he had to utter the next words, and even then, it was barely a whisper.

 

"I'm afraid."

 

Jack seemed taken aback for a moment, then reached a tentative hand up to stroke Rhys's messy, half-gelled hair. Rhys took a heavy breath, wrapping his arms around Jack's shoulders. He drew up, contemplating what the hell he was supposed to say. It wasn't quite clear in his head, so how the hell was Rhys supposed to tell the story in a way that didn't seem like disgusting, mossy, muddy water? Fuck it, that's how.

 

"I feel like we're moving really fast, Jack, but...."Rhys paused. "I don't mind. At all."

 

He leaned up to place a small kiss on Jack's lips, observing the man's confused, concerned features. Jack saw a storm mixing in Rhys's eyes and noticed the lightening in the electric blue and the falling forest in the green, like some kind of flame ridden battle with the memories that wanted to escape his lips. Jack opened his mouth to speak, but Rhys's sentence interrupted his.

 

"If you're absolutely sure you want to hear it, I'll tell you."

 

"Rhysie, baby,"Jack returned Rhys's small peck of the lips and met his eyes. "I'm more than absolutely sure." 

 

It took Rhys a while to form his words, unsure of how to start the whole of his childhood off. He couldn't summarize it, he knew. It was too much. Way too much. 

 

"So, I told you about when I was born, right? When they didn't think I was going to live?"He paused. "Well, it was more that that. I was premature. Like, really really premature. I was an emergency c-section and I had the cord wrapped around my throat and my arm. I think mom was...26 weeks along? The first four months of my life I didn't leave the NICU. Lost my arm before I even knew how to use it."

 

There goes the easy part. Rhys made himself breath. It wasn't bad yet. Yeah, he just had to keep telling himself that. 

 

"So all that happens, they find out my immune system is shit, so I spent a while in quarantine, too. Finally get out of that one, get fluid in my lungs. Long story short, first couple of years of life were a literal hell. Until I was eight, I barely left to hospital. I don't remember a lot of it. Didn't have any friends. Didn't really know what the world was like."

 

A smile, although noted to be heavily forced by Jack, graced Rhys's features. 

 

"There wasn't much worth remembering."

 

"What about after that, kiddo? There's bound to be some kind of happy memories."

 

"Of course there are, but it's all after I got my arm and my eye...ya know, when I could actually function as a human.  But I had babysitters and my parents were always at work and even if things got better I was lonely.  I still couldn't leave my bed because the surgery was too harsh and I was just so lonely,"Rhys's voice broke. "God damnit, Jack, I was so fucking lonely."

 

Rhys tried his hardest to keep tears from forming, but they slipped out of the corners of his eyes anyway. He didn't want this; it was all going to come out at once and that would be too much for both him and Jack, he was sure. Jack, however didn't question it. 

 

"Hey, Rhysie, hey..."Jack wrapped him up in a tight embrace. "It's okay, I've got you..."

 

After twenty minutes of straight crying, Rhys was doubting that a human could actually produce that many tears. The little whines he let out were beginning to become hoarse croaks and a wet patch had formed on Jack's shirt. Through the whole bought of sobs, Jack had held Rhys close, running his fingers through the back of his hair. 

 

"Hey, cupcake?"

 

He could only bring himself to glance up, voice too broken and sore to function. 

 

"I've got you. You don't have to worry about being lonely anymore because I've got you. _I'm here_. You've got me, and Muscles, and your other little lady friend. The little gal at the coffee shop too. You're not gonna be alone anymore, so don't worry about it."

 

When Rhys began to tear up again, and Jack smacked his palm into his own face.

 

"Sorry, Rhysie. I'm just really _really_ bad with feelings."

 

"N-No, Jack,"Rhys smiled. "It was perfect. Thank you."

 

Another kiss, lead by Rhys, full of what one could only describe as innocent, loving, grateful passion. As it gradually deepened, Rhys moved to straddle Jack's legs, flicking his tongue against the CEO's lips. Jack responded with a grin and a tug of Rhys's hair, pulling him back to expose his flushed face and neck. After leaving a serious mark, Jack halted himself and pulled Rhys back into a hug.

 

"I won't say that I'll never leave, Rhysie, but I can promise you won't be alone, ever again."

**Author's Note:**

> Jesus I know I rushed it but I still like it so love me


End file.
